Softly glowing watercolors illustrate this gentle story about a young moose who journeys from his home and becomes lost in a town. Geese flying overhead lead him back toward home, where he hears the voice of the earth calling him. Brief endnotes share nature facts as well as a message about the importance of listening to the quiet voice of life. The environmental theme is seamlessly woven into the realistic story.
— Horn Book
Drawing on Native American and other spiritual traditions, this parable tells of a young moose lured from lake to town by his curiosity. Moss – the Algonquin word for “moose” – travels down a “laughing” stream. But soon the moose’s ears twitch at unfamiliar sounds, and he disregards the “small voice within” that “spoke of the bog. ‘Come home, little brother.'” Pursuing the call of the river (“Follow me!”) he climbs the riverbank and sees a “hard” river roaring with “speed and power” (a busy road). Enthralled, he follows strange smells through the night, and rests among concrete “cliffs.” By mid-morning, his curiosity waning, he realizes he is lost. Fortunately, flocks of migrating Canadian geese overhead point the way back to his bog-home. By holding steadily to the moose’s unique perspective, Kasperson balances the preachy undertone of his tale. Holman’s soft-focus, full-bleed watercolors adhere tightly to the text, amplifying it with needed visual cues.
— Publishers Weekly (1995)
A young moose is lured to town from his home in the north woods. He follows a road and a railway that roar like a river “as if filled with spring water pounding against rocks.” Then the moose finds his way back home by following the migrating geese. Moving beyond anthropomorphism, Kasperson tries to imagine how the moose experiences the world, “listening” with all the senses, caught by excitement and curiosity. The soft, blurry watercolors extend the text, showing the human reality of what the moose perceives. Children will enjoy seeing that the “hard river” is what we know as a road and that a moose could see a truck as a bellowing creature “with wild shining eyes.” The climax is a double-page spread of the young moose with his head raised, listening to the geese calling. Kids will get the message of the connectedness of the animals and the earth. Hazel Rochman.
— Booklist – American Library Association
November 2011 Book of the Month!
Moss, a young moose, ventures from his peaceful home in the woods and gets lost in a nearby town. His excitement and curiosity about this unfamiliar place, with its “hard rivers” (roads) and “wild-eyed creatures” (cars), soon turns to fear and loneliness. to find his way home, Moss must listen with all his senses to the voice of the Earth, which calls him back to the bog. Beautiful watercolor illustrations convey the snowy, quiet setting and match the gentle tone of the story. Seeing the world through Moss’s perspective brings home the message of the importance of connecting with nature. The notes at the end of the book expand on this theme and provide nature facts.
— Big Backyard (Nat. Wildlife Federation) (November 2011)
. . . a gentle, simple story with lovely illustrations that will be enjoyed by younger children.
— NAPRA Review
The prose of Little Brother Moose is elegant, real, and natural. The artwork is a delightful bonus for a strong story line. This whole book is a treat to savor. Reading level would be about 4th grade, but interest will take this one lower and higher without apologies. Superb!
— Chapters – Hodge Podge Books
A wonderful story about how a young moose finds his way home after wandering into a nearby village. Little ones experience what animal instincts may feel like.
— Mother Rising Blog (motherrising.blogspot.com) (March 17, 2010)
The author, using Native American tales, provides a great story for children ages 9-12. The beautiful watercolor pictures blend well with the story. This is a story about a young moose that lets his curiosity get the best of him as he wanders away from the safety of his home to the busy streets in the country where he ends up in a town. Moose is lost and isn’t sure how he will get back home. He isn’t used to all this noise and activity. Finally he sees some geese flying and he finds his way home. The use of soft watercolor illustrations really enhances this story.
Zoey:
“I liked this book, Little Brother Moose. The little moose decides he wants to see what is around him and gets lost. He is sad and doesn’t know how to get home.”
— Kids Reader Views – Zoey Crane (age 6) and Nana (April 2011)
Little Brother Moose should be appealing to youngsters and will also teach them a two-fold lesson about listening in general, and about the voices of nature. As a storybook, Little Brother Moose is pleasing enough and its nature and ecological lessons make it delightful.
— The Vermont Weathervane
Little Brother Moose ventures far away from home and gets lost in town. Some geese flying overhead lead him back toward home. This book is a nice example of nature at work. Beautiful watercolor illustrations help to show environmental perspective, as brief endnotes share nature facts.
— West Virginia Family Magazine (Dec/Jan 2007)
This is a story of Moss, a young bull moose who is lured away from his home by the sights and sounds of civilization. He is curious and cautious of what he sees but soon realizes he is no longer in a world where he belongs. How will he find his way back to his home? This paperback picture book is at a fourth grade reading level but would be enjoyed as a read aloud for much younger audiences. The binding is good and has a sturdy cover that should hold well for libraries and classrooms. This is a beautifully illustrated gentle story that entwines nature, Native American traditions, and the senses. It especially focuses on listening to the inner voice. The story is told from the perspective of the young moose. A first person perspective may be difficult for younger readers to follow at times, although it may allow the readers the opportunity to imagine what the moose is feeling and seeing. For example, when he comes upon a highway he sees a “hard river” and when he encounters telephone poles they are trees with no leaves but with “vines” connecting them. I would recommend this book for the elementary library because it could be used in many different ways. It lends itself to a senses unit in the lower grades, a study of nature vs. civilization, and could be incorporated into a Native American unit as a parable.
— Lane Education Service District – Marcela Firth-Gouveia (Dec. 2007)
